Artemis Fowl: The Complex Returns
by Pokegeek151
Summary: Everyone knows about the Atlantis Complex. But while Artemis is cured, someone else now has to fight a battle within their own mind. And Artemis might join them after all!
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, y'all! Thank you so much for the reviews on my excerpt. I'm sorry to say that I will be removing it from the site. But don't worry-I will make sure it ends up in here somewhere. Anyway, this is the first chapter. I might be able to get something up tomorrow, but it is doubtful. So please review/follow/favorite. It makes me happy. And I might PM you if you follow/fave. Thanks!**

Fowl Manor, Dublin Ireland

Artemis fowl sighed contentedly as he turned the page of his novel. He was reclining ever-so-slightly in his desk chair, the door to his study closed so he wouldn't be interrupted.

Unfortunately, this was not to be the case.

As his fairy communicator began to ring, he scowled.

_I just had one more chapter until I finished,_ he thought, activating the communicator.

"What do you want?" he said somewhat angrily.

His anger turned to concern when he heard Foaly's voice on the line, not Holly's.

"Artemis, we need you in Haven. Now," he said anxiously.

"What's wrong? Did something happen to Holly?" He tried to keep the fear out of his voice.

"Maybe. She's been acting...different lately. She's been avoiding me recently, so I haven't been able to attempt any diagnosis yet. I thought, if we all got together, you, me, Butler, No.1, and Mulch, we might be able to help her."

Artemis almost dropped the communicator. "We're on our way," he told him. After closing the line, he shouted, "Butler! We are needed in Haven, immediately!"

Moments later, his faithful bodyguard opened the door to the study.

"Who's trying to end the world this time?" he said.

"This is no time for jokes, Butler. I just received a call from Foaly. Something is wrong with Holly."

Butler's face hardened. He knew what the elf meant to Artemis. And she was one of his closest friends, as well.

"I'll get the car ready," he said, and left.

Haven City, Underground

Artemis and Butler walked up to the door of Foaly's lab. The boy had traced the call to here, and assumed that was where he still was.

He raised his fist to knock on the door, but it open before him, with Foaly gesturing inside.

"I'm glad you could make it. I managed to convince her to come over here. She should be here in a few minutes." He sounded nervous.

_I know how he feels,_ Artemis thought.

Mulch was already inside, along with the demon No.1. They both stood quietly. Mulch wasn't even cracking any jokes.

Artemis examined the room, looking to see if there were any new projects to talk to Foaly about, to try and lighten the mood. The depressing atmosphere was starting to feel oppressive.

In the corner, there was a large...something with a green cloth draped over it. A small monitor was attached to it, but it was too far away to see what it said.

"What's this, Foaly?" he said, stepping towards it.

As the centaur turned his head from the window to respond, Artemis began to lift the corner of the cloth.

"NO! Don't touch that!" he shouted.

Immediately the cloth fell back into place. Artemis knew how dangerous touching an unknown experiment could be.

After his initial burst of energy, Foaly apologized. "Sorry. It's...unstable. I don't really want anyone...looking at it right now."

Artemis pretended he didn't notice the quick glance between him and No.1.

_I will find out about it later,_ he decided.

That was when Holly arrived.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hiya, y'all! I realize this seems a little sudden, but I already wrote the next chapter! Even though I just published it yesterday, I was bored and had nothing else to do. Thank you so much for reading, even if you don't review. For those of you who got to read the excerpt, that will be relevant soon. Anyway, I won't keep you any longer.**

"Hello, guys. I didn't realize there would be so many people, Foaly," Holly said. Her voice sounded defeated. There were bags under her eyes from lack of sleep, and her vision darted back and forth among the people in the room, as if she thought one of them might jump out and attack her.

Artemis was the first to respond. "Holly, we know this is a surprise, but Foaly called us down. Are you okay?"

He noticed the elf flinch slightly, but decided not to comment. Yet.

"I'm fine, Artemis. Really." She hesitated before adding the last word.

No.1, always concerned, gestured to a chair against the wall.

"Would you like to sit down?" he asked gently.

She simply nodded.

As Holly walked over to the chair, Foaly surreptitiously closed-and locked-the door, making sure she wouldn't be able to run out on them.

"Something is wrong, Holly. I can tell. We've known each other for too long. Did you honestly think I wouldn't have noticed?" Artemis said after she had sat down.

Holly looked up sharply, surprised by his bluntness.

"I'm afraid you're wrong, Artemis. I'm just fine," she mumbled curtly. Still, her eyes darted back and forth.

Butler took a step towards the elf. "I think he's right, Holly," he told her.

She stood up quickly. "Stay back! All of you! Leave me alone!" she shouted.

As she did, Artemis could see her fingers tapping the side of her leg.

"Calm down, Holly. Just sit down, alright? Good." The boy said, his speech pattern following a hunch he had.

The panicked elf slowly regained her composure and sat back down in her chair.

Everyone in the room breathed a quiet sigh of relief. None of them wanted to upset their military-trained friend.

Artemis saw Holly beginning to shake slightly.

He knew he should help comfort her, but he didn't want to reveal his thoughts to the others without more proof. He decided to kneel on the floor next to the chair, ignoring the fact that it was probably horrible for the knees of his suit pants.

He put his arms around her, and when her head jerked up, he saw the suspicion in her eyes.

Whispering almost inaudibly, he said one word to her. "Four."

Artemis could see the calm appearing in her eyes, and without having time to react, she threw her arms around him, as well, sobbing into his shoulder.

"You're the only one who gets me, Arty," she cried softly.

_I'm going to feel guilty about this later,_ he thought as he prepared to break the news. He knew it would hurt, but it was what he had to do.

"I know what's wrong," he said, just loud enough for the others to hear.

Holly, as well as everyone else in the room, stared at him.

Again, he only spoke one word, although the reaction was almost the opposite of what it had been a few moments prior..

"Atlantis," he said simply.

Mulch felt sick and left the room, not wanting to puke.

No.1 gave a small shout, and tears began to spill over his cheeks. Butler remained stoic as ever, although Artemis suspected he was holding back his emotions.

Foaly only shook his head, wondering how he hadn't thought of it before.

Holly went completely silent. Her tremors stopped, and the only movement she made was the incessant tapping of her fingers, this time on Artemis' back, where her hands were still draped.

The boy felt the rhythm, one hard tap followed by three softer ones. _ONE two three four ONE two three four ONE two three-_

He felt the tapping stop mid-pattern, and she suddenly felt much heavier than before. When he looked up, he saw that she had fainted in his arms.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello. I wrote this chapter quickly, not because it was bad, but because it was so good. (At least, I think it is.) Anyway, I hope you guys like it. The next chapter will have some explanations, but I think you'll like what I did.**

Artemis stood up slowly, carefully making sure the unconscious elf in his arms didn't fall over.

No.1 was the first to notice Holly had fainted.

"Holly! What happened? Is she okay? Of course she's not okay. She has the Atlantis Complex!" He was babbling, obviously worried.

"How did you figure it out?" Butler asked him.

"Well, I saw the paranoia in the way she was looking at us, and the way she jumped out at you. Also, she kept tapping a pattern with her fingers. A pattern of four. As a guess, I counted her words, and they were always multiple of fours. To her and gain her trust, I modeled my own speech that way as well. When I knelt down to comfort her, all I said was 'four', hoping that hearing the number would elicit calm. When it did, I knew I was right," Artemis explained, almost casually.

His bodyguard looked impresses.

"Come on," Foaly interrupted. "Let's get her over to the J. Argon clinic. And fast."

He turned on his hooves and unbolted the door.

The boy struggled to lift Holly, so Butler walked over and picked her up himself.

_Maybe I should take Butler's strength training more seriously,_ he thought.

He took five large steps to the door, larger steps than he would usually take. He rationalized this by thinking, _We need all the luck we can get._

Mulch was nowhere to be seen, and they all assumed he went to dig away his feelings somewhere.

Foaly led the others over to what looked like a human van, but a bit shorter. Artemis assumed there would be plenty of fairy tech inside, though.

The centaur scrambled into the specially designed seat in front, and Butler planted his massive frame next to him.

No.1 sat alone in the middle row of seats, and in the far back, Artemis sat next to the window with Holly laying beside him, her head on his lap.

He looked at her worriedly, his usually neutral expression beginning to falter.

"Go, Foaly. Drive," he ordered.

Normally, Foaly would joke that Artemis wasn't the boss of him, but this wasn't normal, so he drove.

Holly awoke a few minutes later, managing to stat completely silent thanks to her stealth training.

Without moving her head, she examined her surroundings.

It was kind of bumpy, so she guessed she was in a car. Where she was headed was another story.

She looked up to see the most beautiful person she had ever met staring out the window.

_Artemis,_ she thought. _I am lying on the lap of Artemis Fowl._

She felt elated, but continued to remain still.

Slowly, she lifted her arm towards his face.

As she place one finger over his lips, he turned his head in her direction. Before he could finish the action, she pulled her hand back down, using the tip of her finger to push down his chin so her was looking right at her. She put her finger to her own lips in a shushing sign, and he smiled a small confused smile.

She reached up and wrapped both arms around his neck and pulled herself up slowly so their faces almost met.

She whispered almost inaudibly, "I want you to myself for a bit."

Her voice was low and smooth, like the _mesmer_ but with only one, almost erotic, layer.

And having said all she needed to say, she closed the remaining distance to his face and kissed him. Hard.

It only lasted a few seconds before Artemis pulled his face away and opened his mouth to say something, possibly to the others in the car, who weren't paying any attention to them.

She put her finger to her lips again, and whispered to him, "You talk to much. Stop." and kissed him again, just as passionately as before.

This time, the boy didn't pull away. In fact, he wrapped his own arms around her and let her lead.

They stayed like this, kissing in each other's embrace, for a good minute before Foaly glanced at his rear-view mirror. He saw the two of them kissing and shouted, "WHAT THE HELL?!" as he slammed the brakes, throwing the two in the back apart.

Artemis had a startled, almost scared, look on his face. Holly, however, still looked at him seductively and whispered, "Holly and I have been wanting to do that for the longest time."

By this point, everyone in the car was looking at them. Butler saw Holly's passion in her eyes, and Artemis's happy bewilderment in his, as well as the fact that their arms were wrapped around each other.

While they weren't kissing, Holly's fingers traced up and down Artemis's spine, sending wonderful little tremors.

Those kisses had been wonderful, and he wanted to do it again and again.

But he didn't let any of this come out in his voice as he said to Foaly, "Keep going."

The centaur shook his head, his mane flying everywhere. "No. I demand an explanation first," he said angrily.

No.1 nodded his head in agreement. Butler just stared, not sure how to react.

The boy spoke simply, "Stage two."

For the second time in the past ten minutes, Foaly started driving again as the result of a couple of well place words.

**What do you think of Holly's alter? And how she acted towards Artemis? I am excited to write more. I hope you guys enjoy.**


	4. Chapter 4

After Foaly got the van moving again, Artemis decided to question Holly's alter, who /insisted/ that she was too weak to sit up, and therefore still had her head on Artemis's lap.

"I know you're not Holly. So, what's your name?" he asked.

The alter frowned slightly. "Why are you being so blunt, Arty dear? Do you not like me? Now I feel bad," she said almost playfully, not sounding too upset.

"I'm sorry," the boy said.

"You should make it up to me," the elf said with a grin. She lifted her arms to wrap around his neck, presumably to make out again, but Artemis caught her wrists and gently made her lower her hands.

She pouted.

"Your name?" he asked again.

"Guess. If you're right, you get to kiss me. If you're wrong, I get to kiss you," she offered, still sounding sexy as hell. "I know you enjoyed yourself, Arty," she added.

The boy began to blush. "I-I-I, uhh, ahh, I-"

Holly's alter laughed, a low quiet, evocative laugh that made Artemis want to kiss her again.

"Your name," he said more forcefully.

_You have to be firm with her,_ he thought. _If you aren't, she'll keep playing with you._

The girl sighed resignedly. "My name is Rose," she told him, her voice sounding disappointed and closer to Holly's normal tones.

_She was acting that way on purpose! She wants something out of me!_ he thought. Then, _Of course she does. She wants to make out. Stop being so paranoid._

He froze, then shook it off. _It's nothing. I'm fine._

"Hello, up there? Earth to mud boy! Or do I need to wake you up myself?" she whispered slyly.

"I'm fine, Rose. I swear. There's no need for your help getting my attention," he told her. "How much can you tell me about Holly's Complex?"

"I'll tell you if you give me another kiss," Rose suggested.

"No. Just tell me," he said, grimacing. "Please," he added.

_What am I doing? I'm sure I'm fine. I'm just a little keyed up, and Holly's mannerisms are just bothering me. I'm fine. I'm fine._

His thoughts were interrupted by a pair of soft lips pressing against his.

He pushed her small frame down, away from his face and nearly shouted, "Would you STOP THAT?"

No.1 turned around in his seat, startled by the loud noise. Up until that point, they had been whispering quietly to themselves.

Butler watched them in the rear-view mirror with slitted eyes.

Artemis looked at them guiltily.

"Sorry. Everything is fine. I swear."

Slowly, No.1 turned back around and Butler stared out the window instead of at the mirror.

When he looked back, he realized Rose was still holding him, and was smiling at him with narrow eyes.

"Why do you have to be such a spoiler-sport?" she said, not sounding the least bit annoyed.

"No more kissing, no more flirting. Just answer my questions, okay?" He was hyperaware of everyone around him, now, and didn't want to be embarrassed again.

"Fine. I suppose, Arty, dear," she sighed, again sounding a bit like the Holly of old.

Artemis also sighed. "We figured out that her 'good' number is four. Does she have a 'bad' number?"

"Mm-hm," she hummed, not wanting to nod her head that was still in the boy's lap.

"What is it?" he asked, trying to sound neutral.

"Five," she said.

Artemis moaned internally.

_If my suspicions are correct, this is going to be a long recovery._


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi, y'all! I didn't realize that I had updated twice in one day. You know what, cool! I don't know when I'll be able to update next, as the wifi where I am at the moment is sketchy. On the bright side, I don't need internet to write! I hope to write, though not necessarily upload, two-three chapters in the next five-six days. Who thinks I can do it? Anyway, this is just so much fun to write. I really hope you guys are liking it, too!**

When they arrived at the clinic, Rose put her head in the crook of Artemis' neck and asked quietly, "Carry me?"

Butler heard her question and went around the back to pick her up.

When she saw the large man reaching towards her, she frowned and mumbled "I'll walk."

That didn't stop her from holding Artemis' hand and resting her head on his shoulder the entire walk in.

Argon himself happened to be in the lobby as they entered the front doors of the clinic.

"Well, if it isn't Artemis Fowl and Holly Short," he said. "You make a cute couple. Artemis, don't scowl at me like that. You know it's true. Look at you two. I guess Holly finally admitted her love, huh?"

Artemis brushed off these comments, and decided to make the doctor figure out what was wrong with the elf.

"Dr. Argon, I would like you to meet Miss Rose Short."

Argon's face was suddenly serious. "Rose? I see. Why don't you follow me, and we'll get you a room."

"Jerbal, do you think we were going to do something scandalous? It's nothing but harmless kisses," Rose said smoothly. To prove her point, she stood up on her tip-toes and kisses the human on his cheek.

"Please, hurry," Artemis implored, his face coloring.

As Dr. Argon spoke to his receptionist briefly about any vacant rooms, Artemis and Holly sat down in the plush seats.

Even though there were several empty ones, Rose waited for Artemis to sit and placed herself on his lap.

Butler watched them for a minute or so, Rose was whispering into his charge's ear, once even trying to nibble it, but when she did, the boy jerk his head away and actually pushed her a little. He look terrified, which only prompted Rose to keep trying.

Rose, for her part, was thoroughly enjoying herself, being in the boy's company.

Butler turned to Foaly, who had been watching the doctor.

"What do you think of what Argon said?" he asked the centaur.

"What? What are you talking about?"

"He said that Artemis andHolly were a cute couple," the man elaborated.

Foaly grinned. "Oh. Well, I think-"

He was interrupted by the gnome walking back over to them and telling them that there was a room open for Holly to stay in.

Rose smiled at Artemis. "Come on, Arty, dear. Our room is waiting."

**Inside Holly's brain, just after she fainted**

Holly groaned as she awoke, despite her stealth training. She was in an unfamiliar room, the only furniture she could see being a large plush-looking armchair and a large circular rug below it.

She was lying on this rug, now, her face pressed against the white threads.

As she stood up slowly, she realized that there was also, what appeared to be, a large screen covering the entire wall facing the chair.

Holly stared at the dark screen. It reminded her of something someone had told her, but she couldn't remember what.

Suddenly, the screen lit up, and she had a first-person view of...the inside of a car.

The view slowly moved so she could see partly out of a window.

And as it paned to Artemis' pale face, she realized where she was.

"I'm in my own brain," she breathed.

As she said it, she noticed that the five-word sentence didn't bother her.

"I'm free."

The screen was familiar because Artemis had told her what it was like for him when Orion was in control, with his mind office and the screen.

She also knew better than to rush blindly into the screen.

"I hope my alter isn't too annoying," she said half-heartedly.

Somehow, she knew this wouldn't be the case. If she understood this correctly, her alternate personality would be some part of herself that she kept hidden, except blown a bit out of proportion.

She turned to sit down in the chair and watch. That's what it was there for, after all.

When she looked back, it was as if the screen had zoomed in on the mud boy's face.

"Are they...we...I...she..._kissing_ Artemis?"

She couldn't believe it. What was her alter like, getting Artemis to kiss her this quickly after waking up?

Their faces pulled apart an inch or two, and she heard her voice say, "You talk too much. Stop." Then they were kissing again.

Holly's jaw dropped.

She heard Foaly's shout, heard her alter say, "Holly and I have been wanting to do that for the longest time.", heard Artemis say she was in stage two, saw Foaly keep driving.

She was appalled at the way her alter-Rose, she heard,-was acting.

Rose was acting sexy and seductive, constantly trying to get Artemis to make out with her and avoiding his questions.

"We figured out that her 'good' number is four. Does she have a 'bad' number?" Artemis asked.

Holly knew that as soon as she was in control again, her paranoia would take over, and she wouldn't tell anyone anything. He had to find out now.

"Tell him!" she shouted a the screen, hoping Rose would hear her.

"What is it?" the boy asked.

Holly heard Rose say "Five."

She leaned back in her mind chair, satisfied. Now, Artemis would be able to help her.

As the two of them kept talking, Holly noticed something a little odd about Artemis.

"He's counting his words, again?" she asked aloud.

She shook her head. "Coincidence," she told herself. "Nothing more."

Returning her attention to the screen, she grimaced as Dr. Argon called them a cute couple.

Suddenly, Rose was kissing Artemis on his reddening cheeks.

"There is no way I am that obsessed with Artemis, is there?" she asked no one in particular.

And the ear nibbling! Holly groaned as she watched her alter try to get the mud boy to kiss her more.

"Why me?" she mumbled over and over, her head in her hands.


	6. Chapter 6

**Howdy, y'all! Guess what; I HAVE STABLE WIFI! It is wonderful. Now I can read and upload and write and EVERYTHING! I'm sorry if this chapter is short. I didn't want it to be mega-long, and besides, I'm pretty sure this is the second one today. I decided to just upload when the next chapter is written, maybe a day after. Also, sorry this one took a while. Although I'm sure someone is going to tell me that it hasn't been a while. It just _feels_ like a while. Anyway, it will keep me on my toes.**

**Also, I keep forgetting this, and since I don't want lawsuits...Disclaimer: IDOAF (I don't own Artemis Fowl)**

**Enjoy!**

[b]J. Argon Clinic, Holly/Rose's room[/b]  
"First Mud Boy here gets Atlantis. And now Holly Short? This is ridiculous!" Dr. Argon said quietly.  
He was preparing for some electroshock therapy already, wanting to speak to Holly herself first, not her alter, Rose.  
Holly was sitting up in bed, trying to conceal her nervousness. Except that it wasn't her nervousness. Artemis knew that she was displaying her alter's personality, but it seemed like more than that. The facial expression was not one he'd ever seen on Holly before. He'd seen Holly nervous, he'd seen her scared, but he'd never seen this. This was someone else. This was [i]Rose[/i]. And that somehow troubled him even more.  
But whoever she was, Artemis saw the way she gripped the bedsheets so hard her knuckles turned white, and he felt bad for her.  
She gazed lovingly at him as he sat down on the bed next to her, putting his arm around her shoulders.  
"I'm scared, Arty," she whispered in his ear.  
He looked up at her in surprise and saw, for the first time, fear in her eyes, instead of playfulness. "I know," he mumbled back.  
"Will it hurt?" she asked meekly.  
Artemis considered for a moment before finally saying, "No. It won't hurt, Rose."  
If he had told her the truth, she might not cooperate.  
"You're lying," she said as Argon placed the nodes on her temples.  
The last thing she heard before the pain hit was Artemis whispering, "I'm sorry."

Artemis stayed sitting on the bed next to the unconscious Rose for a few moments before excusing himself from the room.  
Once alone in the hallway, he leaned against the smooth wall and slid down it onto the floor.  
He took a deep breath and released it slowly.  
[i]Calm down, Artemis. Calm down. You're okay. This is nothing. You're better than this.[/i]  
As he tried to relax, he ran the fingers of his left hand through his raven hair while pressing the thumb and index finger of his right hand together.  
[i]One, two, three, four, five,[/i] he thought. [i]I'm fine.[/i]  
This was how Butler found him when he exited Holly's room.  
"Is something wrong, Artemis?" he asked worriedly.  
Artemis managed to not flinch.  
The boy knew he couldn't let Butler, let anyone, know about his suspicions. So he lied.  
"I am alright, Butler. I am just...anxious, what with Holly being sick like this."  
A slight frown crossed the large Eurasian man's features.  
"We all are. Don't let it get to your head."  
[i]Too late.[/i]  
"Of course," he told his bodyguard. "If you came out here to check on me, you may go back inside. I will only be here a few more minutes."  
Satisfied, though barely so, Butler returned to the room.  
[i]That went better than expected,[/i] Artemis thought.  
He sat there, almost completely motionless for a few more minutes before he stood up.  
As he did, the door opened before him and Butler, Foaly, and No.1 all filed out dejectedly.  
Foaly tried to smile. "Good thing we got out of there. I don't want to see paranoid Holly. Frond knows she might kill us,"  
Artemis mumbled back, "The compulsions and paranoia don't return immediately after consciousness returns."  
"Er, right. Anyway, Mud Boy, Dr. Argon said he'll be done in an hour or so. We are going to the café. Would you like to join us, or are you going to wait all by yourself in the hallway for an hour?"  
"I will wait out here," he said, as confidently as he could.  
"I was being rhetorical. Oh well. Whatever floats your boat," Foaly replied, chuckling at his horrible pun on the "Atlantis" part of the name.  
Needless to say, Artemis was not amused by this.  
"Are you sure you want to be here alone?" his bodyguard asked. "I should stay here, with you. It is my job, after all."  
"I want to be alone," Artemis said forcefully. If he was alone, he would be less likely to reveal himself.  
"Very well, Artemis. Be safe."  
Artemis almost laughed. [i]It might be too late.[/i]

**Again, sorry it's so short. And, just between you and me, it feels really weird writing a note at the end. Oh well.**

**Also, this thing HAS NO SPELL CHECK! GAAAAAH!**

**Special shout-out to my editor, though. She's wonderful.**


	7. Chapter 7

**H-Hey, y'all! Don't kill me! It feels like it's been /forever/ since I last updated. Also, sorry about last chapter, with the bolds/italics. My brother had told me that it was basic HTML code and would change automatically, but /noooooooo/. Anyway, I haven't had too much time to write this week, nor will I for the next few days. But I should be able to get it done. Anyway, enjoy!**

In the clinic's café, Butler stewed in his worry.

"I know that this may seem insensitive to Holly, but I'm worried about Artemis," he eventually said.

No.1 nodded. "He /is/ your principal. And he has been acting strangely, ever since he saw what's been happening to Holly."

"Well, I'm sure he's just worried. We all are," Foaly suggested.

"I know," Butler said. "But I think it's more than that. I-I think he's counting his words, again."

For a moment, everyone was silent. Eventually, Foaly offered half-heartedly, "Maybe he's just trying to make Holly more comfortable?"

Butler shook his head. "If that were the case, he would be speaking in fours. And he would only do it around Holly. But he was at it in the hallway, and it was fives. Not to ignore Holly's condition, but..."

Again, the group went silent. No one wanted to agree with the manservant, but at the same time, none of them had any valid arguments.

Breaking the sad silence, No.1 said, "I think Holly will be awake soon. Do...do you guys want to head upstairs?"

Neither Butler nor Foaly responded at first. Eventually, they both got up and followed the demon out of the café.

Artemis stood up when he heard footsteps on the stairs. He didn't want anyone to see him sitting on the floor of the hallway.

After taking a deep breath, he turned to face whoever it was approaching.

It was Butler, No.1, and Foaly. Thank goodness Butler hadn't seen him attempting to calm down and alleviate the compulsions.

"Butler. Foaly. No.1. Hopefully, Holly should be awake by now."

As he spoke, the door opened and Dr. Argon walked out.

"She's all yours," he said to no one in particular.

Artemis saw the way his bodyguard looked at him, and decided to throw him off the scent, as it were.

"After you, old friend." Luckily, he managed not to cringe.

The man's frown deepened. He walked in, followed by No.1, Foaly, and Artemis last.

After they were all inside, Holly spoke.

"Hey, you guys. How are you all doing?" Her voice was soft, and to see her propped up on the hospital bed like that, seemingly frail, nearly broke Artemis right there.

But he had to be strong. He had to hold out, couldn't let her see him fall, too.

They spoke with her for a while, mostly Foaly asking questions, occasionally No.1 and Butler would join in, Holly answering quietly.

The whole time, Artemis said nothing. He knew that if he were to speak, his secret would be out. And no one could know.

Eventually, Holly whispered, "Could you all arrange yourselves from tallest on the left to shortest on the right, please?"

"Tallest goes on the right!" he blurted before covering his mouth with his hands.

After what seemed like an infinite silence, Holly spoke.

"Artemis," she breathed.

Butler took one step towards his charge, who tried to back away, and picked him up. As he carried the squirming boy out the door, he said to the others, "I'm going to go find Dr. Argon. I will be back later."

No one tried to stop him.

"Unhand me, Butler!" Artemis shouted.

"You will run away if I do," Butler replied simply.

"No. I am not some convict who will run away if given the slightest chance," the boy countered.

"You aren't far off."

Throughout this exchange, Butler strode through the facility, searching for the doctor.

They made an odd pair, a massive Mud Man carrying a smaller, struggling Mud Boy, and many people stopped to stare at them as they passed.

"People are staring at us," Artemis complained.

"Oh well. And stop whining; it does not become you."

Even though the manservant appeared almost nonchalant carrying his charge about the hospital, he was very worried.

_Fives again,_ he thought. _This had better not be what I think it is._

**Hey! SO, I have an idea for a one-shot fic. But I want a little help. In the reviews, I want y'all to vote. Should I write based on 2048, OLO, SpaceTeam, Fruit Ninja, or Piano Tiles? They are all apps available on the (Apple) app store, if there are one or more you haven't heard of. Let me know what you think!**


	8. Chapter 8

**D'Arvit, y'all! Is that you? I feel like I haven't seen you in /forever/! I've been kinda busy with traveling, lately, and also for the next couple of days, so I haven't/won't be able to write to much for a bit, and also school is about to start...oh, Frond, I hate excuses. Oh well. Sorry this took so long. Enjoy!**

**Btw, IDOAF.**

After about five minutes, Artemis stopped struggling. Ten minutes after that, Butler allowed him to walk. Four minutes later, they found Dr. Argon.

"Doctor, we have a problem," Butler said.

"Is something wrong with Holly? I'll head up right away," he said.

Butler placed a hand on his shoulder as he was walking away and said, "Holly is fine, at least she was when we left. No, the problem is Artemis, here..."

His voice trailed off when he realized the boy had run away while Butler had been talking.

Inwardly, he cursed. He should have heard the footsteps. He must be losing his touch.

"Follow me. And I recommend bringing sedatives."

Artemis nearly crashed into the wall as he turned a corner.

While Butler's attention was on the doctor, the boy had run as fast as he could. Admittedly, it wasn't very fast, but it was fast enough. He had lost Butler in the maze of hallways.

_I probably shouldn't have run from him,_ Artemis thought, though he kept going.

He was surprised when, after rounding another corner, he saw Butler staring back at him. Beside him was Dr. Argon, with a syringe in his hand.

All three of them froze.

Butler noticed Artemis eyeing the syringe in Argon's hand.

"Calm down, Artemis. If you just come with us, we won't have to sedate you," the man said as gently as he could.

"No! One, two, three, four, five!" he shouted.

Butler sighed. Obviously, all the stress had finally caught up to him and was wreaking havoc on his unstable mind.

"Go ahead, doctor. It seems Artemis is not as sound of mind as I had thought."

"Could you hold him still while I administer the sedatives?" the gnome asked.

Hesitating a moment, Butler nodded his head. It's what was best for his charge's overall safety, after all.

As he stepped forward, Artemis turned to run again.

Butler easily caught him before he got more than three feet away and held him steady.

Dr. Argon walked over to the struggling Mud Boy, pushed up the sleeve of his suit jacket, and slid the needle into the boy's pale arm.

In the seconds before the sedative took effect, Artemis whispered to his bodyguard, "Thank you."

Artemis awoke in a quasi-familiar room. The walls and ceiling were all white, and it was quiet. If he turned his head, he could see Butler asleep in a chair near the bed he was laying on.

He bit back a scream as he tried to sit up and was assaulted by a massive headache, as well as the cutting pain of several straps on his arms, legs, and torso biting sharply into his skin.

Butler heard him and was awake instantly.

"Master Artemis, are you alright?" he said, his voice tense, expectant.

"I...am fine. Oh, sure, _now_ it's 'master'. And why on Earth am I strapped to a bed?" he questioned.

"Dr. Argon was unsure how...stable you would be when you woke up," Butler said, relieved that it was indeed Artemis in control.

"Well, seeing as I do not intend to get out of bed anytime soon, much less attempt to escape from the only people who can help me, perhaps you could remove them?" Artemis asked, as cynical as ever.

"Of course, Artemis," Butler said, suppressing a grin.

**Sorry it was so short. I've been a little rushed...You know what, I'm just going to shut up.**


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